It's looking more and more likely that Oklahoma will have a coaching search for its next leader of the men's basketball program when the season ends.
The Sooners have lost six of their last seven games while going 1-6 during the month of February. That run has dropped OU to 4-11 in SEC play and 17-11 overall.
Now with March here and only three regular-season games left, the Sooners need everything to go their way to slide into the NCAA Tournament without winning the SEC Men's Basketball Tournament.
If OU's bubble pops as expected, it will be the fourth-straight year the Sooners don't go dancing under Porter Moser since he took over the program in 2021. Right now, the only two things that could save Moser's job would be a miraculous March Madness run or a $7.5 million buyout.
Sooner Nation has made it known they want Moser gone, and they certainly don't want to be in this same situation another four years from now, so before we dive into a coaching search, here are three enticing coaches OU should avoid to replace Moser.
Kelvin Sampson, Houston
Kelvin Sampson is the name Sooner Nation has been desperately wanting the most, but he's actually at the top of the list of coaches OU should avoid this time around.
Sampson already had one stint at OU and no one should ever go back to their exes. There's always good times, but ultimately there are reasons there was a breakup and those issues are never resolved like they're hoped to be.
The problems Sampson had with OU still exist. No matter the heights he takes the Sooners in basketball, football will still be king, and Sampson doesn't want to be second fiddle.
Sampson has had success everywhere he's been, but he's also left every program in shambles on his way out and has a knack for finding trouble. When the breakup would inevitably happen, OU doesn't want to be in an even deeper hole than it is now.
There's also the obstacle of even getting Sampson to Norman. He won't come cheap. OU will already need to pay Moser's $7.5 million buyout, then will also still need to afford to throw a lot of money at Sampson, plus the talent he needs to succeed.
Buzz Williams, Texas A&M
So far, Buzz Wiliams has done for the Texas A&M Aggies exactly what Sooner Nation wants: get to the NCAA Tournament.
This will be the third season in a row Williams gets the Aggies dancing in his sixth year leading the program. However, in his sixth season, Williams is due to leave and why he's being mentioned as a candidate throughout college basketball.
Williams has a trend of leaving programs shortly after building them into consistent NCAA Tournament visitors. The Sooners don't want someone that will likely leave as soon as they're on the cusp of getting to the next level, nor has Williams ever reached the next level.
Mick Cronin, UCLA
Mick Cronin has gotten UCLA back to its old ways, but between a conference sending it all over the country and a lack of resources and support, many speculate Cronin will be looking at other options this offseason.
If money didn't matter, Cronin would be worth getting to Norman. However, money matters.
Cronin has a reported $10 million buyout after April 1 that OU would have to pay on top of Moser's $7.5 million buyout to even get the job open. So that's $17.5 million spent even before whatever it takes to outbid other programs also trying to lure Cronin.
That money just isn't worth it when there are other coaches who could also lead the Sooners to success for less.